Zirou: The Stolen Planet
by ClockworkScales
Summary: The war is over, and the Lysithea has decided to colonize Zirou, previously owned by the Tarsians. Mikako is given a choice of mate... and her decision is easy. But would Noboru be willing to travel to Zirou, just for her?


The battle – no, the war – was over between the UN Army and the Tarsians. But the _Lysithea_ was still out in space and gave no indication of turning back. They had received orders to colonise the planet Zirou where the Tarsians used to live. It turns out they lived under similar conditions to Earth. The atmosphere was perfect for human colonisation.

Perhaps we had been fighting our brothers or sisters, Mikako thought. The Tarsians... were they really so different from us?

She had been told that she could choose one male back on Earth with whom she could mate. Naturally, she chose Noboru, but whether he would be willing to come to Zirou was beyond her. She couldn't believe the UN Army would be willing to colonise a new planet, just like that, when they hadn't even handled the situation of overpopulation on Earth. Perhaps they wanted more time to counter the problem.

Mikako couldn't help but wonder... Maybe she was still needed on Zirou in case other martians came to the planet... so she could fight in her Mech. Maybe colonisation was just a pretence.

She stepped out of her Mech onto the planet Zirou. This area was mostly rocky, but the _Lysithea_ had landed there with the goal of keeping the flora of the planet safe from damage. Large deep green ferns and trees could be seen against the horizon. The planet almost felt like earth, except the constellations in the sky would be unrecognisable. The air was a little dry, and this galaxy's sun-star was a little smaller in the sky, but the similarity between Zirou and Earth was remarkable. It was like they were cousins. Mikako couldn't wait to see what kind of creatures lived on this planet... if there were any left, that is.

Mikako's armpits were damp from being stuck in her Mech for so long. She only had a small cleaner in the Mech, but she had run out of detergent a long time ago. Even so, the cool breeze was welcoming. The rocks were a pale red, and smelt like asphalt. A few vines snaked out of the ground, but they seemed unharmed by the huge space fleet that had landed there.

Mikako hadn't smelt or felt fresh air for a very long time. Nor had she stood on the ground for months. She wobbled as she walked toward a fellow pilot, her boots crunching on blackened pepples. Her muscles felt weakened. She recognised the bags under the woman's eyes of whom she approached. She had seen those very bags under her own eyes in the reflection of her Mech screen every day. Other than that, the woman's features were not very captivating. She knew the woman's name based off her Mech number. The woman was in her thirties, and she had talked with her a little when they had time, like when they were travelling. Their Mechs had been positioned next to one another. Her name was Yuna Shitake. Yuna and Mikako had worked together on the extermination mission on Zarek, their area was the Blue-tree zone, named because it had been covered in poisonous aqua coloured trees and plants.

The exchanged hellos, and then waited for instructions from the _Lysithea_.

'Please choose a fellow soldier with whom to share base with on Zirou,' an American man's voice echoed throughout the landing area from the _Lysithea_. Mikako nodded silently at the order, as if they could see her nod. Yuna and Mikako decided to stick together.

It took three hours to set base on camp. They set up tents and gathered food from the _Lysithea_'s storage bay. They were then informed that it would take six months for some _Lysithea_ representatives to go back to Earth, and then return on the _Lysithea_'s sister ship, _Xethonia_. The new inhabitants of Zirou, they were told, were to be specialists from a number of fields as well as the soldier's chosen mates. Only five per cent of the soldiers could be pregnant at any one time, however, for safety's sake. Mikako didn't mind this, she didn't want to get pregnant any time soon. She just wanted to see Noboru.

They had been willing to accept death on this journey, so colonising a planet and staying away from Earth was not much of a shock, especially after eight years of space travel. They had already seen several fellow pilots go down. They were just happy to have somewhere safe to stay, and to have real company. That said, it was still lonely. While they rested in their tents, a few scientists who had come with them on the _Lysithea_ collected samples from the earth, and made their way over to the greenery in the distance on a buggy to look for edible plants or foodstuff. They were accompanied by a few soldiers carrying tranquilliser guns and rifles. A pile of gas masks were stashed in the back.

Yuna put her hand on Mikako's shoulder.

'My husband is going to come here,' she told Mikako. 'I've decided on that already.'

Mikako nodded.

'What about Noboru?' Yuna asked. Her voice was flat and monotonous, as if she had forgotten how to speak. Mikako frowned and looked at the red earth beneath her pilot boots.

'I hope he will come,' she said plainly. She could only hope that he remembered her. They had battled in the war for eight years. Would he remember or care about her, after all this time? They had travelled through nearby solar systems, and it took a very long time to do so. But on their way back to Earth on an unknown route, they had discovered a habitable planet. It had been filled with some unknown breed of Tarsians, but they had managed to wipe them out within a matter of months. That was Zirou. The stolen planet. Would Noboru want to live on a stolen planet with a stranger? No... Not a stranger. With Mikako. An older Mikako.

Mikako sighed. She was nearing her thirties. She wondered what Noboru would look like... If Noboru wouldn't come, they would pick a suitor for her. She prayed, silently, that he would come. Would he be willing to leave his life on Earth behind in order to colonise a lonely planet? They had spent so many special moments together back on Earth, but they felt like dreams by now. Distant memories. Sometimes in her Mech she would remember a few select memories very vividly, and she would cry with loneliness. Was Noboru as lonely as she was? She would know the answer, she told herself, when she found out who the _Lysithea_ had chosen for her new partner. Would it be Noboru... Or a complete and total stranger?

She remembered the vision she had had many years ago. An older version of herself, perhaps her as she was now, was telling her... "You will see him again."

She knew, in that moment, who her partner was going to be. A few tears trickled down her pale cheek. She couldn't know for sure if she was delusional or not, but either way, she had to hold the hope in her heart.

'_Noboru_...'


End file.
